Poll: Voters show support for Cuomo, his agenda

Strong public support remains for Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s budget proposals as the calendar heads toward feverish March negotiations, according to a new poll.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during an economic development awards ceremony on Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016, in Albany, N.Y. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

And that seems to be a good thing for Cuomo himself.

A Siena College poll released Monday shows that a majority of registered voters support most major points of Cuomo’s agenda, and they also view him more favorably than they have over the past two years.

Cuomo’s favorable-unfavorable rating is 60-34, up from 56-37 last month and his highest favorability rating since January 2015.

At the same time, the support for his agenda that voters showed last month is continuing for February: 77 percent support extending the so-called millionaires’ tax, 76 percent support a proposal to expand ride-hailing outside of New York City and 65 percent back a proposal to double a child care tax credit for families making between $60,000 and $100,000 annually.

Support for the governor’s free SUNY/CUNY college tuition proposal for those making less than $125,000 per year dipped slightly to 58 percent from 60 percent a month ago, while a majority (53 percent) support raising the age of criminal responsibility from 16 to 18 after a plurality (49 percent) opposed it a month ago.

The only major proposal on Cuomo’s agenda that still isn’t supported by a majority of voters is his plan to build a 750-mile multi-use trail that would cover much of the state from east to west and north to south (38 percent support; 57 percent oppose).

Support for the governor’s agenda seems to be helping in other areas. Fifty percent of voters say they would vote to re-elect him if he runs for a third term next year, the highest percentage willing to re-elect him since Siena started asking that question last summer.

Predictably, only 29 percent of Republicans would be willing to re-elect him, however, while 47 percent of upstaters (a plurality) say they’d like to see an unnamed someone else in the Executive Chamber.

But for now with Cuomo still in office through at least next year, the governor’s favorable-unfavorable rating among upstaters is 54-42.